Pterinopelma felipeleitei, Bertani & Leal, 2016

Bertani, Rogério & Leal, Fernando, 2016, A new species of Pterinopelma (Araneae: Theraphosidae) from the highlands of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil and description of the male of P. sazimai, Zoologia (e 20150190) 33 (2), pp. 1-9 : 4-6

Pterinopelma felipeleitei sp. nov.

Figs. 8-18 , 20

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:66866038-7BB2-4F73-8233-E8C3A697E781

Pterinopelma sazimai Bertani, Nagahama & Fukushima, 2011: 8 , f. 7-16 (in part: only the male); World Spider Catalog, 2015.

Diagnosis. Males of P.felipeleitei sp. nov. can be distinguished from congeners by the following combination of characters: weakly developed palpal bulb keels ( Figs. 13-18 ); and strongly curved metatarsus I ( Fig. 12 ) touching apex of retrolateral spur when folded. Females can be distinguished by having: short spermathecae separated by short, heavily sclerotized area ( Fig.10 ); absence of stridulatory setae on prolateral face of coxa I; absence of long setae on the carapace ( Fig. 8 ); absence of urticating setae of type III on abdomen dorsum; sternum as long as wide (Fig. 9); and carapace and legs black with conspicuous white rings on distal femora, patellae, tibiae, and metatarsi ( Fig. 20 ).

Description. Female holotype (MNRJ 6873) ( Figs.8-10 , 20 ). Carapace 19.88 long, 18.32 wide, chelicerae 9.94. Legs (femur, patella, tibia, metatarsus, tarsus, total): I: 15.69, 9.45, 10.27, 9.82, 6.21, 51.44. II: 14.22, 8.46, 9.33, 9.44, 5.69, 47.14. III: 13.15, 7.46, 9.01, 10.70, 5.56, 45.88. IV: 15.38, 8.37, 11.83, 15.48, 5.54, 56.6. Palp : 11.43, 7.98, 7.71, –, 7.28, 34.4. Midwidths : femora I-IV = 3.83, 3.96, 4.41, 3.87, palp = 2.87; patellae I-IV = 3.99, 3.7, 3.72, 3.69, palp = 3.31; tibiae I-IV = 3.58, 3.13, 3.23, 3.01, palp = 3.05; metatarsi I-IV = 2.37, 2.15, 2.37, 2.12; tarsi I-IV = 2.22, 2.17, 2.15, 2.19, palp = 2.54. Abdomen 20.18 long, 15.56 wide. Spinnerets : PMS, 2.64 long, 1.09 wide, 1.72 apart; PLS, 2.93 basal, 2.35 middle, 3.01 distal; midwidths 1.92, 1.87, 1.36, respectively. Carapace. Length to width 1.08; cephalic area noticeably raised, thoracic striae deep. Fovea : deep, straight, 4.10 wide. Carapace covered with short, slender, dense setae and several sparse longer setae, bordered with long setae pointing out ( Fig. 8 ). Eyes and eye tubercle. Tubercle 1.02 high, 2.21 long, 2.81 wide. Clypeus 0.1 wide. Anterior row procurved, posterior recurved. Sizes and inter-distances: AME 0.51, ALE 0.58, PME 0.32, PLE 0.60, AMEAME 0.53, AME-ALE 0.33, AME-PME 0.35, ALE-ALE 2.02, ALE-PME 0.62, PME-PME 1.36, PME-PLE 0.14, PLE-PLE 2.06, ALE-PLE 0.45, AME-PLE 0.68. Eye group 2.72 wide, 1.49 long. Maxillae. Length 6.95, width 4.67. Cuspules : ca. 268 spread over ventral inner heel. Lyra absent ( Fig. 9 ). Labium 2.32 long, 2.96 wide, with ca. 100 cuspules spaced by less than one diameter from each other on the anterior third center. Labio-sternal groove shallow, flat, without evident sigilla. Chelicerae. Rastellum absent, basal segments with 12 teeth on promargin; and small teeth on basal area. Sternum. Length 9.15, width 8.86. Posterior angle rounded, not separating coxae IV. Sigilla: three pairs, all small, rounded, one diameter from margin. Legs: formulla: IV I II III. Clavate trichobothria: on distal 2/3 of tarsi I-IV. Leg coxae: with sparce soft setae; stridulatory or modified setae lacking. Scopula. Retrolatral femur IV scopulate. Tarsi I-IV fully scopulate. Metatarsi I-II fully scopulated; III 1/2, IV 1/4 distal scopulate. Metatarsus IV not divided by row of setae. Spination: palp: femur p0-0-1ap, patella 0, tibia v0-0-4ap, p2-2-1ap; leg I: femur p0-0-1, patella 0, tibia v0-1-3ap, metatarsus v 0-0-1ap; leg II: femur p0-0-2, patella 0, tibia v0-1-2ap, p1-1-0; metatarsus v1-0-2ap; leg III: femur p0-0-1, patella p1, tibia v0-2- 3ap, p1-1-1, r1-1-1, metatarsus v2-2-2ap, p1-1-2(1ap), r0-1-1ap; leg IV: femur p0-0-1, r0-0-1, patella 0, tibia v1-3-3(2ap), p1-1-1, r1-1-0, metatarsus v18(2ap), p1-1-1, r0-1-1ap. Claws: ITC absent from all legs; STC with a single row of 6-7 small teeth. Urticating setae. Type I with region “A” longer than region “B”, 0.25 to 0.28 long, on anterior and lateral areas of abdomen dorsum; Type III apparently lacking, but median and posterior abdominal areas are bald (see remarks). Genitalia. Two short spermathecae separated by heavily sclerotized short area, spermathecal stalk narrower than spermathecal bulb ( Fig.10 ). Color pattern ( Fig. 20 ). Carapace black with several whitish setae, bordered by whitish setae. Chelicerae, sternum, coxae black ( Fig. 9 ). Labium, maxillae reddish brown ( Fig. 9 ). Legs and palp black with broad, conspicuous white rings on distal femora, patellae, tibiae and metatarsi. All legs and palp with two conspicuous white stripes on dorsum of femora, patellae and tibiae, a single short conspicuous white stripe on basal metatarsi. Abdomen black with long brown setae on dorsum ( Fig. 20 ). Male: described by BERTANI et al. 2011, as the male of P. sazimai .

Type material. Female Holotype: BRAZIL, Minas Gerais: Serro ( Parque Estadual Pico do Itambé, Serra do Arrependido Condado , 18°27’38”S, 43°22’11”W, 1421 m a.s.l.), 23 November 2012, F. Leal ( MNRJ 6873 ) . Paratypes: BRAZIL, Minas Gerais: Santana do Riacho ( Parque Nacional da Serra do Cipó , [19°17’S, 43°35’W]), two males, May 1993, M.T.V.A. Campos ( IBSP 111631 ) ; Morro do Pilar ( Parque Nacional da Serra do Cipó, Alto Palácio , 19°17’51.39”S, 43°30’34.47”W; 1372 m a.s.l.), one female, 12 April 2014, F. Leal ( MNRJ 6874 ) ; Serro ( Parque Estadual Pico do Itambé, Serra do Arrependido Condado , 18°27’38”S, 43° 22’11”W; 1421 m a.s.l.), one male, 23 November 2012, F. Leal ( MNRJ 6875 ) matured in captivity .

Distribution. Pterinopelma felipeleitei sp. nov. is known from Serra do Arrependido Condado (Parque Estadual Pico do Itambé, municipality of Serro) ( Fig. 23 ) and PARNA Serra do Cipó, which includes the municipalities of Morro do Pilar (Fig. 24) and Santana do Riacho. The three sites where individuals of the species were found belong to the Espinhaço Mountain Range and are located in the central portion of the state of Minas Gerais in Brazil.

Etymology. The specific name is a tribute to the herpetologist Felipe S. F. Leite (Universidade Federal de Viçosa-Campus Florestal) for his extensive contribution to the knowledge of the biodiversity of the Espinhaço Mountain Range.

Remarks. The female paratype (MNRJ 6874) has dorsal abdominal setae covering intact and only type I urticating seta was found. Therefore , we consider that type III urticating seta is absent in this species. The distribution of urticating setae on abdomen corresponds to fig. 5 in BERTANI & GUADANUCCI (2013). BERTANI et al. (2011) considered the presence of denticles on the prolateral inferior male palpal bulb keel ( Fig. 17 ) a putative synapomorphy of Pterinopelma . However, these denticles were not noted in the recently collected male (MNRJ 6873) ( Fig. 18 ). The keels of the male palpal bulb are strongly reduced in this species ( Figs. 13-18 ) and it is difficult to examine them in detail. The absence of these keels in the specimen can be due to morphological variation, but can also indicate that the specimen analyzed in BERTANI et al. (2011) is damaged or even anomalous. Therefore, Pterinopelma is defined by a particular combination of characters listed above in the generic diagnosis.

Natural History. Pterinopelma felipeleitei occurs in the highlands (above 1100 m a.s.l.) and in open rock fields called “Campos Rupestres,” a typical phytophysiognomy of the Espinhaço Mountain Range ( Figs. 23-24 ). The new species is associated with mountain tops formed mainly by rocky outcrops, sandy soil, and herbaceous vegetation. This type of environment is predominantly arid in the dry season and is marked by the formation of temporary streams in the rainy season. The female holotype and the paratype (MNRJ 6875) from Serro were collected at night on rocks, while the paratype (MNRJ 6874) from Morro do Pilar was found in the source of a temporary stream, on a bromeliad, preying on a cricket.

Figures

Figures 8-12. Pterinopelma felipeleitei sp. nov. (8-10) Holotype female, MNRJ 6873: (8) carapace and chelicerae; (9) sternum, maxillae, labium and coxae; (10) spermathecae; (11-12) male, IBSP 111631: (11) left leg I tibial spur, ventral; (12) left leg I, prolateral. Scale bars: 8-9, 11-12 = 5 mm, 10 = 1 mm.

Figures 13-18. Pterinopelma felipeleitei sp. nov., left male palpal bulb. (13-14) IBSP 111631: (13) prolateral; (14) retrolateral; (15-16) MNRJ 6875: (15) prolateral; (16) retrolateral; (17) IBSP 111631:, embolus, prolateral; (18) MNRJ 6875: embolus, prolateral. Scale bars: 1 mm.

Figures 19-24. (19-22) Habitus: (19) Pterinopelma sazimai living male, MNRJ 5060; (20) Pterinopelma felipeleitei sp. nov. living female, holotype MNRJ 6873; (21-22) male, MNRJ 6875: (21) immature; (22) after reaching maturity; (23-24) habitat: (23) Parque Estadual Pico do Itambé, municipality of Serro, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, (24) Parque Nacional da Serra do Cipó, municipality of Morro do Pilar, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Photos: (19) Alessandro Giupponi, (20) Rogério Bertani, (21-24) Fernando Leal.